Ok. Bought the base game the other day, and we are planning on playing tomorrow evening (me, the wife and our two boys, ages 8 & 6). I really like what I see in the game. If they like it also (which I am pretty sure they all will), what expansion(s) should I buy first?

Also, one question:

Can the Overlord spawn monsters in previously explored areas?

Ex: The Heroes have gone through Area 1, cleared out the monsters, and moved on to Area 2. Can the Overlord now spawn monsters in Area 1 (since the heroes are deep in Area 2, no line of sight into the previous area)?

You betcha he can. He can spawn them anywhere they can fit that the heroes can't see. In fact, spawning enemies behind the players is one of the overlord's better tactics. You're really playing a delaying game against the players, and every step you can get them to go backwards chasing monsters is one step that they're not moving toward their objective.

If you've got Descent questions, I'm the guy to ask. I worked on a PC version for a couple of years, although it was canceled last year. It was more than enough time for me to absorb pretty much every little nuance in the rules, though it's been a year since I played it last.

Sorry to hear that Tilt, I was really looking forward to that. You guys should really consider some kind of online, subscription, ad, or micro transaction based boardgame website as it's still an untapped market.

Yeah, I'd love to do that, but I have a different job that I like and that actually pays well now. I'll probably get back into the game industry at some point, but right now I prefer to have a comfortable income.

In fact, until a new area is accessed, Area 1 and Area 2 are the only places you can spawn monsters. Typically, each new area (when accessed) has a default monster setup.

I'm looking forward to Sea of Blood. There's a small part of me that wishes that it would integrate with Road to Legend, but I'm not disappointed that it is basically it's own campaign setting. The goals and map don't lend to integration with RtL.

I do like the overall system. There is one annoying issue with the game. If you play as a Dungeon Master who is just trying to provide an adventure or challenge to the players, the game can actually get boring for everyone. If you play as the Overlord to *win* and crush the party, that's where the game really shows it's style. The players do need to be warned about this in advance though. Each side needs to play to win and then the game really shines.

Granted, players typically play to win, which isn't a problem. But it's easy for them to get crazy skill combinations and/or much better weapons and equipment early on to where they're popping monsters as soon as they spawn. That's where the overlord has to keep the pressure on. The players are on a time limit (the conquest tokens) and need to complete the scenario.

Logged

Tom "Dreamshadow" Tjarks Aunt Wu: Care to hear your fortune, handsome? Iroh: At my age there is really only one big surprise left, and I'd just as soon leave it a mystery.

I've played this twice, both times as the OL, and frankly, the early levels are disheartening for the OL. The players get way overpowered really early, and stay that way throughout. It's incredibly boring as the OL because it's virtually impossible to kill players, and frequently, monsters are getting one-shotted before they even have a chance to move. This supposedly gets better later on, but the first impression it makes is pretty poor for the OL. Combine that with the length, and the OL gets to spend three hours essentially doing nothing while the heroes go hog wild.

I actually house ruled the treasure chests to where once they're opened, players have to physically move there and spend a movement point to get their goody out of it. I'm not crazy about the idea of Bob opening a chest in one room, and suddenly Jim down the hall has a new sword materialize in his hands. That mechanic probably makes more sense later on, but I haven't seen it yet.